The rest of the morning went by peacefully.

After wishing us a good school year, Headmaster Skylark had made way for a stern-looking teacher.

Montague and Sophia, seemingly perfectly healed, returned to class half an hour later while we were being shown the layout of the school.

As I had already noticed, the Academy had two wings. The east wing, where we were now, housed the facilities for our training. Besides this classroom, dedicated to theoretical lessons, there were others with various equipment useful for practical training. There was also a large inner courtyard. The school had three floors, but we weren't told what was on the upper floors of the east wing. I imagine there were teachers' offices and their rooms.

The west section was entirely dedicated to student accommodations and other spaces for our free time. There was a dining hall, two large bathrooms, a recreation room, and a sports area complete with even an indoor pool.
Each of us would have our own room.

Amy was excitedly fidgeting beside me. For both of us, who had so far lived in a humble village, living with all these luxuries would be incredible.

«A room all for myself!» squealed Amy happily.

I got her, as she had grown up with three brothers, finally having a little privacy would probably feel like a dream. A couple of hours ago, I would have reacted in a similar fashion.

But now my mind kept going back to the duel I had witnessed and to Sophia Thornton.
I needed to figure out the secret behind that girl's strange blade.

"Maybe I should try to exchange a few words with her, perhaps I could discover something useful."

Usually I was terrible at making friends, but if I approached her together with Amy, I might have a chance.
Unlike me, chatting and getting to know new people was second nature to her.

It wasn't nice to approach her with ulterior motives, but this was a competition. I had to get every advantage I could.

Luckily, the opportunity presented itself on the same day, after the end of the morning lessons, which had mostly been an introduction to the Academy.
Amy and I stopped in the class for a few minutes to chat about what we had discovered so far.

«I've never been great at casting spells... But I think you can do it. You have the largest magical power in the class, and you've always been so smart. I'll do my best to support you,» said Amy, puffing up with pride.

«Thank you, Amy. But as you saw from that duel, mana isn't everything.»

«That's true, that girl was incredible. I've never seen anyone so skilled with a sword. But you don't just have mana on your side, right?» Amy replied, winking at me.

Mmmh, she was right. After all, I also had an ace up my sleeve, but I wasn't sure if it would be useful against someone like Sophia. And unlike the ability to cut spells in half, it was something rare but not unique. Who knows how many other mages were capable of doing something like that in here.

«Well, let's go to lunch. All these rules and explanations have made me hungry.»

Amy and I left the classroom and headed towards the west wing.

Finding the dining hall wasn't difficult.
We just had to follow the noise: chairs being moved, cutlery clinking, and the cheerful buzz of our classmates' conversations.

We went through a double door and found ourselves in a vast room illuminated by several chandeliers. Dozens of tables occupied most of the space. There were tables of various sizes, from long tables to more intimate ones for 4 people. It seemed there were more seats than necessary, perhaps to ensure a solitary lunch for those who wanted to be on their own.

Amy and I joined a line that started to the left of the entrance, guessing it was for getting our food. Peeking over the shoulders of the students in front of us, we caught a glimpse, at the beginning of the line, of a table covered with a red cloth with a complicated magic circle drawn on it.
When a student approached it, it emitted a glow, and a tray full of dishes materialized out of thin air.
I faintly remembered hearing something about it during the lesson.
Apparently, our meals were personalized. They would take our tastes into account to serve us balanced and healthy meals.
Certainly convenient. But it all seemed a bit cold and mechanical.

These thoughts were soon dispelled when it was my turn, and I received my portion. A plate of pasta and a large steak with an inviting side salad materialized in front of me.
If we ate like this every day, mechanical as it may be, I'd get used to it.

After Amy also received her tray, we walked around looking for a place to sit.
There was plenty of choice, but that's when I got an idea.

Lunch was the ideal time to try and make friends!

I scanned the dining hall until I saw her.
Sophia Thornton was sitting alone at a table near the wall, seemingly intent on devouring a plate of spaghetti.
Her tray was visibly fuller than mine.

"She must have gotten half of Montague's," I thought, chuckling.

I signaled for Amy to follow me and headed towards Sophia's table.
When we reached her, I asked:

«Can we sit here?»